On 29 July 2021 in Addis Ababa, Switzerland and Ethiopia signed an agreement on the avoidance of double taxation (DTA) with respect to income tax. This will ensure the requisite legal certainty for the ongoing development of bilateral economic relations and tax cooperation between the two countries.
The DTA allows the Swiss network of double taxation agreements to be expanded into Eastern Africa for the first time. It guarantees legal certainty and a contractual framework, which will have a beneficial effect on the further development of bilateral economic relations.
The DTA takes account of the developments associated with the OECD's base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) project, which aims to combat the erosion of the tax base and profit shifting. In this respect, it contains an anti-abuse clause. The DTA also contains an administrative assistance clause in line with the international standard for the exchange of information upon request.
The cantons and the business circles concerned have welcomed the conclusion of this DTA. It still needs to be approved by the parliaments of the two countries before it can enter into force.
Address for enquiries:
Bilateral Tax Issues and Double Taxation Treaties Section, State Secretariat for International Finance SIF
Tel. +41 58 462 71 29, dba@sif.admin.ch.
Last modification 29.07.2021